Such a sweet, sour, tangy and just all-around delicious life we live... from poetry and cooking to movie and book reviews, from baby updates to philosophies of family and spiritual adventures... enjoy the wide, tangential ride.

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

It has begun: The days of the dreaded (but often effective) Time Out. So far, our discipline has been fairly minimal, and limited primarily to removing items that he wants or removing him from the scene of potential disaster. I've been reading some toddler discipline books and online advice columns, though, and decided to give Time Outs a try. I know there are probably thousands of parents out there who swear by it, but I also know that many of us resort to Time Outs for all of our disciplinary needs, and it gets way over-used. I didn't want to be one of those "You want a Time Out? Do ya? Huh?" types, so I avoided it as long as possible.

Now that there is a distinct possibility that I might be getting a new job and putting Ethan into a child care facility, I need to help him get up to speed with his social skills. And one of the most important skills is learning how to navigate the daycare setting, with all of its rules and special procedures to help keep order amidst the potential chaos. Being able to control your own impulsiveness is something that everyone can benefit from knowing, and Ethan could certainly use the help in that arena. Yesterday we had two Time Outs, and he did so well during each one. He sat still in his Time Out spot against the wall in the main corridor, and sat there the whole two minutes. Both times! Today, when he got his first Time Out, he started saying "I sorry, mom" about 30 seconds in. What a doll! And then he helped clean up the food he dumped out earlier.

Picture this...

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Who am I?

I write in my blog (lemontartlife.blogspot.com) to try to figure out just who I am and what I'm doing here... Like so many, I still have to find my purpose in life. For now, it's enough to know that I have a son to raise and introduce to this amazing world. I'm hoping the rest falls into place along the way